


Heads or tails.

by Demon_Cookie101



Series: A side of Amporafam, hold the sauce [2]
Category: Homestuck
Genre: Somewhat civil conversations
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-05-11
Updated: 2018-05-31
Packaged: 2019-05-05 05:15:50
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 3,732
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14610180
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Demon_Cookie101/pseuds/Demon_Cookie101
Summary: Two sets of conversations, held at approximately the same time, about near enough the same thing.





	1. Heads

Spin finds you.

You’re not really surprised. She doesn’t know how to let go, and you figured she’d show up looking for you at some point for some reason or another.

You’ve heard of her descendant, you knew Spin was coming.

She buys fish from the same monger you got your haul from, even though she doesn’t eat it. You trade her the scallops you got for it as you walk off, and wait for her to talk.

You would detour, stay away from your boat and Eridan until Spin’s done talking, but this fish stinks and you want it in the freeze holds before it starts smelling too bad.

Eridan’s on his way out of the marina anyway, three books clutched to his chest as he eyes you both. You don’t keep track of who your descendant goes and talks to (What, you don’t. Not actively anyways, and he generally tells you if he’s going to see someone who doesn’t like him. His associates are scared of you, it’s brilliant.) so you don’t even blink as you drop a small bag of roe into his arms and keep on walking.

Spin’s giving you a look, you can just fuckin’ tell. You roll your eyes without turning around, “Kid needs to eat, and it’s good roe.”

She goes to pull herself on board, obviously assuming that she’s _allowed_ on.

Her boots make weird clattery sounds when you all but throw her back onto the path with a snarl. If she wants to talk, fine, but she’s never setting foot on your boat again.

She tries again, because she doesn’t know when to fuckin’ _stop_. You draw blood when you throw her back down. She gets the point.

You perhaps take more time than is necessary to put the fish away (along with the other bits of shopping you did along the market front. What, they do good snacks and Eridan’s become partial to this flat biscuit thing with a gooey center. Weirdo) but you don’t really want to talk to Spin. You have an idea as to why she’s here to talk, but that doesn’t mean you’re up to it. She was a bitch back on Alternia, she probably still is one, and you don’t want to have to deal with her bratty tendencies just because she’s not allowed to take her frustration out via murders. She’s as dead to you as the fuckin’ clown.

She’s sucking out the inside of a scallop with a sour look on her face, but you honestly can’t care less. There’s a bench just outside the marina gates, overlooking the ocean. You head for there, because it’s a nice view, it’s out of the marina, and no one really walks there at this time. Not when the markets are still on.

“She doesn’t sleep.” Spin starts talking after a few minutes. She doesn’t look at you, just out at the ocean. You wonder if she misses it, or whether she’s found herself a place with her tiny descendant. “And when she does, she wakes up nearly screaming. The names keep changing, and she won’t tell me who they are even though she knows I’ll find out anyway. She counts, she’ll count for hours if I can’t distract her, because it calms her down.”

Spin looks at you, you don’t look at her. “She’s scared of me.”

“I think she’s more afraid of disappointin’ you.” You counter, because that’s what Eridan was. It took weeks before he told you about the FLARP campaigns. How he pretended to be you, and spent hours strategizing and reading as much as he could on the battles you fought or that happened around your time. You think he may have been afraid of you, at the start, but ultimately, he was afraid of being disappointing. He still is, if you’re being honest on your opinion here.

“Did she tell you about her campaigns?”

“A bit. Just what she did, how she won, who she played with. Apparently your sprog was the brain.” You can’t help but snort and look at her, perhaps a little _too_ smug.

Nah. Totally smug because duh. Eridan’s a fuckin’ genius with his groundplan strategies, from what you’ve figured out. He knows how to compensate and think on the fly when it goes wrong, which is better, sometimes, than going into a fight with a full battle plan in mind.

Shame he didn’t think to use that kind of thought pattern before he died. Maybe he would’ve been able to survive a little longer.

You think of a lot of ‘maybes’ when it comes to your descendant.

“Course he was.” You shake your head at her, or just in general (get rid of the memories of Eridan’s nightmares). “But I reckon she’s not afraid of you so much as she’s afraid of not bein’ what you want. What they went through in the games, I doubt we barely count as a threat to them. Not how we’re used to.”

She grumbles beside you, chewing on the edge of a scallop shell. Gross.

“How did you fix yours?”

That gets you looking at her. “Fix mine?”

“Your brat. I’ve seen him walk around the town sometimes, when you’re docked. He looks like he doesn’t care, even when he interacts with the group from the game.” She looks at you like she’s genuinely asking for pointers on how to fix her messed up kid. Like Serket the Tiny is a bit of rigging that just needs untangling before it starts working again.

It’s irritating. You don’t even like Eridan’s gamemates, you doubt you’ll like Spin’s descendant, but it’s still irritating. They played a hell game, of course they’re all going to be a bit broken.

Still… Spin never really asked you for help unless she’s exhausted all her other options. She must have done what you did, talked to Rosa first. Difference is you decided to listen to Eridan as well, she obviously hasn’t.

“You stop thinkin’ it’s an easy fix, for one thing. Eridan’s a good actor, and even though he doesn’t like to talk, he knows I’m not gonna chop his head off just because he’s showin’ weakness.” You look at her, how her hairs a wayward mess (more than it used to be) and how she genuinely seemed upset about the state of her descendant’s head. “Can you say the same for yours?”

She hisses at you, like she can scare you into agreeing that she’s clearly not doing her descendant wrong, but you’ve never been scared of Spinneret Mindfang, and you don’t plan on being scared now.

Plus she’s always looked ridiculous when she hisses. Totally the wrong set of fangs for it, honestly.

She seems a bit confused that you’re not snarling back at her, like you used to when you actually cared about her and her petty actions. You just blink at her, and then stand. Eridan will be back soon, and you want to head out into the bay tonight.

“Perhaps, and I’m goin’ out on a very knowledgeable limb here, Spin.” You scratch at your fin. Salt’s crusted on it, fuckin’ dammit. “Perhaps you should actually ask your descendant what you can do, and tell her that you’re in no way embarrassed by her. Pull those mussy ass feelin’s away from obnoxious in brown and direct it at your descendant.”

She’s quiet. Maybe she’s actually thinking about it. That’d be a first, stubborn old spider.

“She’s so small, Dual.” Spin meets your eyes when you look back at her.

You wonder why she thought asking you for descendant advice was a good idea. You’re winging it with Eridan, and it seems to be working, but still.

“I know. You’d be best to remind her that she’s allowed to be, too, or she’s goin’ to hurt herself.”

Spin chucks an empty scallop shell at your head, even though she looks contemplative.

She doesn’t thank you as she leaves, but later, when you’re untying from the dock and heading back out into the channel, Eridan shows you the messages that Serket the Tiny (apparently called Vriska, you don’t really care) sent him that basically said Spin spoke to her. Positively. Do these kids not know how to communicate?

You totally do not be smug the entire way to the island chain, just like how you totally don’t send Spin an entirely smug message about “finally listenin to me”.

Eridan just shakes his head at you from his curled up position in a blanket and with a book, muttering about “fuckin’ weirdass adults”.

He’s probably not wrong.


	2. Tails

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Eridan and Vriska have a conversation.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Am I taking full writers creative liberty here? Yup. Is it probably unneeded and wrong character development? Most likely. Is it self-indulgent as heck? You bet. Do I care? Nah mate this is fun.

She asks to meet at the docks.

You haven’t actually heard from Vris since you got back, or woke up or whatever it is. Sure, you’ve seen her, but you can’t say you’ve spoken more than a few words to her.

She still annoys you, but out of everyone (aside from Sol who apparently still remembers your memories every so often and insists on talking to you) she probably understands the most what you’re feeling in regards to your ancestor.

So you compromise, and tell her to meet you at this one café that doubles as a bookstore. It’s not really a crowded place, but you’re on first name basis with the owner (what, you go there nearly every time you dock to get new books) and you know that there’s always at least someone there, so if she wants to try throwing a fit, she can’t.

Not that you think she will, but it is Vris. You’ve learnt to just prepare for whatever weirdass behaviour she’ll come with.

 _Spinneret fuckin’ Mindfang_ is walking with your ancestor down through the marina gates when you head out. Dualscar dumps a bag of something on your stack of books and carries on, while you totally don’t stare after them. It’s still, _still_ , really really weird to see trolls that, before the game, you had only read about.

Living legends all over the place, it blows your damn mind.

(Some of them, the ones you’ve met, are exactly the grumpy old piece of shits you thought they would be)

Vris isn’t there when you get to the bookstore, but that’s only because you know she was waiting for you to walk in first.

Psh, like you’d pick a place that would be a threat to you. Even in this new world where there’s nothing to hunt or hide from, there is still the potential for threat.

(Dualscar doesn’t like it when you say that. You’re not sure why, but Sol just called you an idiot when you asked him so you think you’re missing something. Again.)

You order tea for yourself and sit in your seat, which isn’t really yours but always seems to be empty when you rock up. It’s nice and comfy and too big for you, so you sink into the pillows.

You love it. It matches the rest of the building, and it feels almost as safe as Dual’s ship.

(Which is stupid, because it’s furniture. It’s just furniture.)

Vris looks tired when she sits down across from you, even when she glares and grumbles. You’re not here to listen to her bitch about you, or whatever it is she’s posturing for. She’ll get over herself soon (hopefully very soon, you want some more books) and get down to whatever it is she first messaged you about.

You have a very large sneaking suspicion about what it is, but you’re more than happy to ignore it like some petulant wriggler until she brings it up.

It’s still scary, being so near an old as hells violet who could kill you quicker than you could have ever dreamt of being. Some days, it’s scarier that he doesn’t. You still don’t understand, and you _hate_ not understanding.

“She keeps watching me.”

The girl who works the coffee machine brings over your tea and takes Vris’ order with a smile. It’s a greenie, a new world greenie. She’s okay.

You wait for her to leave all the same, before looking back at Vriska. You didn’t see much of her during your time spent lying in bubbles and floating around. She’s grown, same as you. Still picks at her cuticles. “Always like she’s lookin’ for somethin’?”  
“ _Yes_ , god.” She groans and slouches back into the chair. You’re almost insulted that she didn’t think you’d get it. Rude. “She just… she keeps _watching_ me. And I don’t know why. She knows my achievements, but she also knows where I didn’t… When the thing…” she snaps her teeth at the table, because Vriska still doesn’t like the word failures. “She doesn’t say anything about them. She’s a _legend_ and everything and I just…”  
“You just want her to talk about it, to get it over with, but not at the same time because you don’t want to hear that you failed from your ancestor’s mouth.” You don’t say idol, because that’s too close to home.

Vris nods all the same. She looks tired, probably in the same way you do. The way that makes Dualscar keep trying to make you eat more and sleep more and “be a fuckin’ child, kid”.

“That happen with you?” She takes the coffee she ordered from the greenie with a thanks. You know for a fact that that shit is full of creamer, and you don’t know how she can drink something so sweet.

(You don’t know how she can drink coffee full stop. Tastes gross.)

“Yep.” You sigh and sip at your tea. You know what’s coming.  
“Did you freak out?”  
You sigh again, and stare at the ceiling. “I freaked out.”  
“Did you die.”

Now she’s just being a shit.

Too bad you were hatched to be the biggest, most dramatic shit around.

“Of course I did. They had to get a few time players and a life player in to reanimate my mangled corpse from where my ancestor had beaten me to a pulp for darin’ to show such a weakness.”  
She nods, all solemn like. “I knew it. I made a bet-”  
“A’course you did.”  
“- That you’d be double-”  
“Uh, excuse you, _triple_.”  
“- _double_ dead the next time I saw you.”

You wonder if she knows that you know that she’s just jumping outta the way of the metaphorical bullet of talking about her fear of being inadequate in her ancestor’s eyes.  
Of course she knows. This isn’t the first time either of you have discussed the potentially wild occurrence of being a failure to your lineage.

Not that either of you will admit that out loud.

Vris is snickering into her coffee, and you know that she knows you know. She looks almost scared, hiding behind her cup and her humour and her walls of webbing. You want to tell her to stop being so fake, but you also need to tell her what you learnt. Because while you may not like her, you know what she’s feeling, and you know that it sucks, and you’re finally capable of being able to say something that will help, instead of hinder.

“He told me that I was brave.” You tell her instead, quietly, and look down at the worn table with your books and stained cup-rings. “I didn’t believe it, and I still don’t, sort of. But he said I was brave, and that he knew what I did and that he didn’t fault me for what I did wrong, so long as I acknowledged it myself. Because if I acknowledge it, then I can work to fix it, and that’s what makes a great captain and a great strategist. You need to be able to know when to admit you’re wrong and work over it.”  
“You know I was never good at that. I left the fixing of the plans to you.” She sucks at being told her plans suck. God the number of headaches you got from just dealing with her shitty planning for FLARPs is bordering on legendary.

Not Captor-worthy, but legendary all the same.

“I know. But, and this is the real kicker Vris, no one on this new planet is gonna go and kill you for admittin’ you did wrong by some people. I spent a lot of times in the bubbles listenin’ to other versions of everyone-”  
“I know. I heard about that from Feferi. Y’know she’s w-”  
Nope. Not goin’ there right now. “ _As I was sayin’_. I spent a lot of times listenin’. You were happier in some of the doomed timelines because you stopped posturin’ your way to bein’ somethin’ you’re not. Sure, you technically won the ghost end game for us, and set about a bunch of stuff to help us win, but you did it in the worst way possible.”  
“Oh because blowin’ up a matriorb and tearing apart the hope of the session was a good way.”  
“Back off with the snark you over grown slug or I’m leavin’ and tellin’ Dual that you’re as much of a fuckin’ weenie as he thinks you are.”  
“He does _not_.”  
“Does _too_.”  
“ _Eridan!”  
_ “I ain’t lyin’. Now shut up. I’m dispellin’ wisdom.” You’re not. You’re making it all up on the fly but you’re doing it because she knows how it feels to be afraid of the boots left out for you to fill and you’re sick of being afraid of your own past.

“She’s not gonna kill you for showin’ weakness Vris. You need to talk to her. It’s terrifyin’, I will not lie, but it… it works. They listen. They’re supposed to be smarter and braver and better than us, and they are, but they didn’t go through the game, and she won’t know how to help you unless you tell her.”

Vriska pretends she’s not sniffling. You pretend, like the gracious troll you are, not to notice all the same. “She’s probably the one person on this planet who will defend you from anythin’ anyone says, but you’ll only feel worse if you let her believe wrong information, or if you don’t admit you did it the wrong way.”  
“Speaking from experience?” Her snap doesn’t feel so much a snap as it does a feeble attempt at getting the high ground. She never got the high ground, it’s always been yours.  
“Yes. D’you know how bad it feels to be within hearin’ range when not one, but _two_ Maryams are tellin’ your ancestor that you can’t change your ways because you’re an egotistical genocidal brat?”  
She winces.

You may be exaggerating a little, but not too much. They did tell Dualscar that you probably can’t change as a troll because… well you stopped listening after that. You don’t want to know the because, because then you’ll believe it and then you really won’t change.

And you do want to. It would be nice having real friends again.

“You know your history-”  
“Yeah because you’re a _nerd_ who doesn’t shut up.”  
“Irrelevant. You know your history. You really think you want a collection of weird uppity jades to go around mentionin’ that Serkets are a bad lot because both iterations of them seriously fucked with some people and show no sign of change? Mindfang may not care for what she did to Kan’s ancestor or to how she basically got mine killed, but she’ll care if it affects you.”

You finish your tea. You hope this conversation ends soon, you’re getting jittery.  
“It’s scary.” She says it so quietly you almost think you imagine it.  
“I know.”  
“I don’t know what I’m doing, Eridan.”

“Did we ever?” Did you? Probably not. Are you both particularly good at winging it in social situations? Perhaps. You at least know how to bullshit yourself away from people. You’re not too sure what Vris used to do, or what she may do now.

“If it helps-”  
“Your advice is shit.” God shut up Vris. Honestly.  
“If it helps, to make her less scary, Dualscar said she was a massive nerd too when she was our age.”

It makes her perk up. “He wouldn’t have even _known_ her the records said-”  
“She used to organise a group to partake in _Tombs and Taverns._ ”  
She stares at you. Vriska actually sits up and leans towards you. “Shut up.”

“No joke of a lie. Your ancestor played tombs and taverns, and if my ancestor is correct, wrote out whole scenes for the next session. She stopped it once she got older, but your ancestor was a _nerd_.”

Vris looks like everything just went her way and she’s suddenly being gifted with the best possible thing ever.

Which, you technically just did. You gave her a weakness from her ancestor’s history. You gave her a playing card.

She’s near enough vibrating in her seat in an attempt to keep from cackling. Weirdo. You keep talking, “Humans have a version of it. I heard about it, from one’a them on the marina. They call it dungeons and dragons and basically it’s a… a…” You pause. How the fuck do you explain this. “Uh, I guess it’s basically tombs and taverns except with more adventure. It’s like they were tryin’ to make their lives more excitin’ while we tried to make it more domestic and less… murdery.”

That’ll do.

“So do you think it’s a thing in this world?” She looks almost hopeful. You hope she remembers the bit about you telling her to just _talk_ to her ancestor. That’s a bit more important here.  
“Uh yeah. Duh. There’s books on it.” You think. Probably. There’s books on everything, there’s bound to be books on this weirdo nerd thing.

Vriska doesn’t say goodbye, she just sort of finishes her coffee, flicks her fingers at you and leaves.

You message her when you get back to the marina to remind her to _talk dammit._

You reckon she does, only because Dualscar’s being weirdly smug and gloaty about something, probably about whatever he told Mindfang (more like _Nerdfang_. Ha. Nice) when they spoke.

You keep yourself wrapped in a blanket as he steers the boat back out into the channel and for the islands, and really only move when your phone buzzes against your thigh.

It’s Vris. She doesn’t quite thank you, but that’s what you’re gonna read it as anyways, even though the wording makes you roll your eyes.

Serkets, _honestly._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I just want Mindfang to be a massive nerd when she was a kid okay. Tombs and Taverns is basically DnD but with less combat and more just spelunking and treasure hunting.


End file.
